Information processing device and non-transitory computer readable medium

ABSTRACT

An information processing device is provided with an acquisition unit, a detection unit, and a combination unit. The acquisition unit performs layout analysis on image information and acquires multiple regions. The detection unit detects a feature indicating that regions are continuous from each of the multiple regions acquired by the acquisition unit. The combination unit combines adjacent regions in a case in which the feature is detected by the detection unit.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is based on and claims priority under 35 USC 119 fromJapanese Patent Application No. 2019-016250 filed Jan. 31, 2019.

BACKGROUND (i) Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to an information processing device and anon-transitory computer readable medium.

(ii) Related Art

For example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No.2001-52112 describes a recognition processing method that recognizesinformation in an original image. The method includes identifying aregion in an original image, re-identifying the region in the originalimage according to information obtained from a target to be recognizedfor every region defined by identification, and recognizing the targetto be recognized in every re-identified region.

SUMMARY

Meanwhile, in the case of combining text regions, although technologythat combines using the center coordinates and heights of text regionsexists, in this case, text regions with nearby center coordinates andalso little difference in line height are combined. In other words,because text regions not having nearby center coordinates are notcombined, the desired combination result may not be obtained in somecases.

Aspects of non-limiting embodiments of the present disclosure relate toobtaining a desired combination result compared to the case of combiningmultiple text regions by using the relationship of the centercoordinates of the text regions.

Aspects of certain non-limiting embodiments of the present disclosureaddress the above advantages and/or other advantages not describedabove. However, aspects of the non-limiting embodiments are not requiredto address the advantages described above, and aspects of thenon-limiting embodiments of the present disclosure may not addressadvantages described above.

According to an aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided aninformation processing device provided with an acquisition unit, adetection unit, and a combination unit. The acquisition unit performslayout analysis on image information and acquires multiple regions. Thedetection unit detects a feature indicating that regions are continuousfrom each of the multiple regions acquired by the acquisition unit. Thecombination unit combines adjacent regions in a case in which thefeature is detected by the detection unit.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will be described indetail based on the following figures, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example of an electricalconfiguration of an image forming device according to the firstexemplary embodiment;

FIG. 2A is a diagram illustrating one example of an input image;

FIG. 2B is a diagram illustrating one example of multiple text regions;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a functionalconfiguration of the image forming device according to the firstexemplary embodiment;

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating one example of the flow of a processby a character recognition processing program according to the firstexemplary embodiment;

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating one example of an input image accordingto the first exemplary embodiment;

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating one example of multiple text regionsobtained as a layout analysis result according to the first exemplaryembodiment;

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating one example of a text region obtainedas a combination result according to the first exemplary embodiment;

FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating one example of an image to which thecombination process according to the first exemplary embodiment isapplied;

FIG. 9A is a diagram illustrating another example of an input image;

FIG. 9B is a diagram illustrating another example of multiple textregions;

FIG. 10 is a block diagram illustrating one example of a functionalconfiguration of an image forming device according to a second exemplaryembodiment;

FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating one example of the flow of a processby a character recognition processing program according to the secondexemplary embodiment;

FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating one example of an input imageaccording to the second exemplary embodiment;

FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating one example of an image region andmultiple text regions obtained as a layout analysis result according tothe second exemplary embodiment;

FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating one example of a text region obtainedas a combination result according to the second exemplary embodiment;and

FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating one example of an image to which thecombination process according to the second exemplary embodiment isapplied.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments for carrying out the presentdisclosure will be described in detail and with reference to thedrawings.

First Exemplary Embodiment

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating one example of an electricalconfiguration of an image forming device 10A according to the firstexemplary embodiment. As illustrated in FIG. 1, the image forming device10A according to the present exemplary embodiment is provided with acontroller 12, storage 14, a display 16, an operating unit 18, an imageforming unit 20, a document reading unit 22, and a communication unit24.

Note that the image forming device 10A is one example of an informationprocessing device. Besides the image forming device 10A, the informationprocessing device may also be applied to devices such as a personalcomputer (PC), a smartphone, or a tablet, for example.

The controller 12 is provided with a central processing unit (CPU) 12A,read-only memory (ROM) 12B, random access memory (RAM) 12C, and aninput/output (I/O) interface 12D. These components are interconnectedvia a bus.

Each functional unit, including the storage 14, the display 16, theoperating unit 18, the image forming unit 20, the document reading unit22, and the communication unit 24, is connected to the I/O 12D. Each ofthese functional units is capable of bidirectional communication withthe CPU 12A via the I/O 12D.

The controller 12 may be configured as a sub-controller that controls asubset of operations of the image forming device 10A, or may beconfigured as a main controller that controls all operations of theimage forming device 10A. An integrated circuit such as a large-scaleintegration (LSI) chip or an integrated circuit (IC) chipset, forexample, is used for some or all of the blocks of the controller 12. Adiscrete circuit may be used for each of the above blocks, or a circuitintegrating some or all of the above blocks may be used. The aboveblocks may be provided together as a single body, or some blocks may beprovided separately. Also, a part of each of the above blocks may beprovided separately. The integration of the controller 12 is not limitedto LSI, and a dedicated circuit or a general-purpose processor may alsobe used.

For the storage 14, a hard disk drive (HDD), a solid-state drive (SSD),flash memory, or the like is used, for example. The storage 14 stores acharacter recognition processing program 14A for realizing a characterrecognition function according to the present exemplary embodiment. Notethat the character recognition processing program 14A may also be storedin the ROM 12B.

The character recognition processing program 14A may be preinstalled inthe image forming device 10A, for example. The character recognitionprocessing program 14A may also be realized by being stored on anon-volatile storage medium or distributed over a network, andappropriately installed in the image forming device 10A. Note thatanticipated examples of the non-volatile storage medium include aCompact Disc-Read-Only Memory (CD-ROM), a magneto-optical disc, an HDD,a Digital Versatile Disc-Read-Only Memory (DVD-ROM), flash memory, amemory card, and the like.

For the display 16, for example, a liquid crystal display (LCD), anorganic electroluminescence (EL) display, or the like is used. Thedisplay 16 includes an integrated touch panel. On the operating unit 18,various operating keys such as a keypad and a Start key are provided.The display 16 and the operating unit 18 accept various instructionsfrom a user of the image forming device 10A. The various instructionsinclude, for example, an instruction to start reading a document, aninstruction to start copying a document, and the like. The display 16displays various information such as the results of processes executedin accordance with instructions received from the user, notificationsabout processes, and the like.

The document reading unit 22 takes in one page at a time of a documentplaced on a paper feed tray of an automatic document feeder (notillustrated) provided on the top of the image forming device 10A, andoptically reads the taken-in document to obtain image information.Alternatively, the document reading unit 22 optically reads a documentplaced on a document bed such as a platen glass to obtain imageinformation.

The image forming unit 20 forms, on a recording medium such as paper, animage based on image information obtained by the reading by the documentreading unit 22, or image information obtained from an external PC orthe like connected via a network. Note that although the presentexemplary embodiment is described by taking an electrophotographicsystem as an example of the system of forming images, but anothersystem, such as an inkjet system, may also be adopted.

In the case in which the system of forming images is anelectrophotographic system, the image forming unit 20 includes aphotoreceptor drum, a charger, an exposure unit, a developer, a transferunit, and a fuser. The charger applies a voltage to the photoreceptordrum to charge the surface of the photoreceptor drum. The exposure unitforms an electrostatic latent image on the photoreceptor drum byexposing the photoreceptor drum charged by the charger with lightcorresponding to the image information. The developer forms a tonerimage on the photoreceptor drum by developing with toner theelectrostatic latent image formed on the photoreceptor drum. Thetransfer unit transfers the toner image formed on the photoreceptor drumonto a recording medium. The fuser fuses the transferred toner image tothe recording medium with heat and pressure.

The communication unit 24 is connected to a network such as theInternet, a local area network (LAN), or a wide area network (WAN), andis capable of communicating with an external PC and the like over thenetwork.

The image forming device 10A according to the present exemplaryembodiment is provided with an optical character recognition (OCR)function, and is capable of converting an image included in imageinformation into one or more character codes by performing characterrecognition.

Meanwhile, as illustrated in FIGS. 2A and 2B as an example, whencombining multiple text regions by using the relationship of the centercoordinates of the multiple text regions, the desired combination resultmay not be obtained in some cases.

FIG. 2A is a diagram illustrating one example of an input image. FIG. 2Bis a diagram illustrating one example of multiple text regions.

The input image illustrated in FIG. 2A is an image containing five textlines, and if layout analysis is performed on this input image, a layoutanalysis result including multiple text regions R1 and R2 is obtained,as illustrated in FIG. 2B.

Additionally, because there is a delimiter character “:” at thebeginning of each text line in the text region R2, it is conceivablethat the text region R1 and the text region R2 were originally acontinuous text region. Consequently, it is desirable for the these textregions R1 and R2 to be combined into a single text region, butdepending on the relationship of the center coordinates, the textregions R1 and R2 may not be combined in some cases.

For this reason, by loading the character recognition processing program14A stored in the storage 14 into the RAM 12C, and executing thecharacter recognition processing program 14A, the CPU 12A of the imageforming device 10A according to the present exemplary embodimentfunctions as each component illustrated in FIG. 3.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a functionalconfiguration of the image forming device 10A according to the firstexemplary embodiment. As illustrated in FIG. 3, the CPU 12A of the imageforming device 10A according to the present exemplary embodimentfunctions as an acquisition unit 30, a detection unit 32, a combinationunit 34, and a recognition unit 36.

The acquisition unit 30 according to the present exemplary embodimentperforms layout analysis on an input image, and acquires multipleregions. Layout analysis refers to a process performed as preprocessingfor character recognition, and is a process that distinguishes andacquires a text region containing character candidates and an imageregion other than the text region from features such as the consecutivestate of black pixels and the spacing of blobs of black pixels. By suchlayout analysis, layout information indicating attributes such as theposition and size of each region is acquired. Note that the input imagemay be image information acquired by reading with the document readingunit 22, or image information obtained from an external PC or the likeover a network.

The detection unit 32 according to the present exemplary embodimentdetects features indicating that regions are continuous from each of themultiple regions acquired by the acquisition unit 30. In the case of thepresent exemplary embodiment, it is sufficient for at least a textregion to be included among the multiple regions, but a text region andan image region may be included among the multiple regions. Also, as afeature indicating that regions are continuous, a specific imagepositioned at the beginning or the end of a text line contained in atext region is applied. The specific image referred to herein is animage expressing a predetermined delimiter character as one example.Note that examples of delimiter characters include “:”, “;”, “=”, “−”,“→”, and the like. Delimiter characters are a type of punctuation mark,and are used to join character strings to each other.

In the case in which features are detected by the detection unit 32, thecombination unit 34 according to the present exemplary embodimentcombines adjacent regions. Specifically, in the case in which adelimiter character, which is one example of a feature, is positioned atthe beginning of a text line, the combination unit 34 combines the textregion containing the delimiter character with the text region adjacentto the left edge of the text region containing the delimiter character.On the other hand, in the case in which a delimiter character ispositioned at the end of a text line, the combination unit 34 combinesthe text region containing the delimiter character with the text regionadjacent to the right edge of the text region containing the delimitercharacter.

The recognition unit 36 according to the present exemplary embodimentperforms a character recognition process on the multiple text regions,including the combined text region obtained by the combination unit 34,and outputs the obtained character recognition result to the storage 14as one example. Note that for the character recognition process, a knownmethod such as feature matching or pattern matching is used as oneexample.

Next, FIG. 4 will be referenced to describe the action of the imageforming device 10A according to the first exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating one example of the flow of a processby the character recognition processing program 14A according to thefirst exemplary embodiment.

First, if the image forming device 10A is instructed to launch thecharacter recognition processing program 14A, each of the followingsteps is executed.

In step 100 of FIG. 4, the acquisition unit 30 acquires multiple regionsby performing layout analysis on an input image. As one example, layoutanalysis is performed on an input image 50 illustrated in FIG. 5, and alayout analysis result including multiple text regions R11 and R12illustrated in FIG. 6 is obtained.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating one example of the input image 50according to the first exemplary embodiment. FIG. 6 is a diagramillustrating one example of the multiple text regions R11 and R12obtained as a layout analysis result according to the first exemplaryembodiment.

In step 102, the detection unit 32 specifies one text region from amongthe multiple regions acquired in step 100. As one example, the singletext region R12 is specified from the multiple text regions R11 and R12illustrated in FIG. 6.

In step 104, the detection unit 32 detects an image of the beginning ofone or more text lines contained in the text region specified in step102. As one example, an image 50A of the beginning of the text lines isdetected from the text region R12 illustrated in FIG. 6.

In step 106, the detection unit 32 determines whether or not the imageof the beginning detected in step 104 is a delimiter character. In thecase of determining that the image of the beginning is a delimitercharacter (in the case of a positive determination), the flow proceedsto step 108, whereas in the case of determining that the image of thebeginning is not a delimiter character (in the case of a negativedetermination), the flow proceeds to step 110. As one example, the image50A illustrated in FIG. 6 is determined to be the delimiter character“:”. For the determination of a delimiter character, a known method suchas feature matching or pattern matching is used as one example. Forexample, features (such as the consecutive state of black pixels and thespacing of blobs of black pixels) of predetermined delimiter charactersare derived to create a dictionary of features, and the createddictionary is stored in the storage 14. Subsequently, features of theimage of the beginning of one or more text lines detected from a textregion are derived and compared to features in the dictionary to therebydetermine a delimiter character.

In step 108, the combination unit 34 combines the text region containingthe delimiter character with the text region adjacent to the left edgeof the text region containing the delimiter character, and the flowproceeds to step 116. As one example, the text region R12 and the textregion R11 illustrated in FIG. 6 are combined, and a text region R13illustrated in FIG. 7 is obtained as the combination result.

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating one example of the text region R13obtained as a combination result according to the first exemplaryembodiment.

Note that in the case in which an image region containing an image ofsomething other than a character candidate exists between the textregion containing the delimiter character and the text region positionedto the left of the text region containing the delimiter character, thetext region positioned to the left is excluded from the combinationtarget. Also, in the case in which the distance between the text regioncontaining the delimiter character and the text region positioned to theleft of the text region containing the delimiter character is a certaindistance or greater (for example, 10 characters or greater), the textregion positioned to the left is excluded from the combination target.

On the other hand, in step 110, the detection unit 32 detects an imageof the end of one or more test lines contained in the text regionspecified in step 102. Note that steps 104 to 108 and steps 110 to 114may be interchanged in the processing sequence.

In step 112, the detection unit 32 determines whether or not the imageof the end detected in step 110 is a delimiter character. In the case ofdetermining that the image of the end is a delimiter character (in thecase of a positive determination), the flow proceeds to step 114,whereas in the case of determining that the image of the end is not adelimiter character (in the case of a negative determination), the flowproceeds to step 116.

In step 114, the combination unit 34 combines the text region containingthe delimiter character with the text region adjacent to the right edgeof the text region containing the delimiter character, and the flowproceeds to step 116. Note that in the case in which an image regioncontaining an image of something other than a character candidate existsbetween the text region containing the delimiter character and the textregion positioned to the right of the text region containing thedelimiter character, the text region positioned to the right is excludedfrom the combination target. Also, in the case in which the distancebetween the text region containing the delimiter character and the textregion positioned to the right of the text region containing thedelimiter character is a certain distance or greater (for example, 10characters or greater), the text region positioned to the right isexcluded from the combination target.

In step 116, the combination unit 34 determines whether or not a textregion not yet processed by the combination process exists. In the caseof determining that an unprocessed text region exists (in the case of apositive determination), the flow returns to step 102 and the process isrepeated, whereas in the case of determining that an unprocessed textregion does not exist (in the case of a negative determination), theflow proceeds to step 118.

In step 118, the recognition unit 36 performs the character recognitionprocess on multiple text regions, including the text region obtained bythe above combination process, and acquires a character recognitionresult.

In step 120, the recognition unit 36 outputs the character recognitionresult obtained in step 118 to the storage 14 as one example, and endsthe series of processes by the character recognition processing program14A.

FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating one example of an image to which thecombination process according to the first exemplary embodiment isapplied. In the case of the image illustrated in FIG. 8, a layoutanalysis result including a text region R14 is obtained.

In FIG. 8, the delimiter character “:” is contained in the text regioncontaining “Eaves ventilation:, Eaves finishing:, Nonflammable number:,Semi-fireproof construction:”. For this reason, the text regioncontaining “XXXX soffit ventilation edge type, XXXX 8 mm thick, NMXXXX,QF030RS-XXXX” adjacent to the right edge of the text region containingthe delimiter character is combined with the text region containing thedelimiter character and treated as the text region R14.

Note that although the above describes the case of using an imageexpressing a delimiter character as a feature indicating that textregions are continuous, a character code expressing a delimitercharacter may also be used as the feature. In this case, the detectionunit 32 detects a character code expressing a delimiter character bydetermining whether or not a character code obtained by performingcharacter recognition on a specific image positioned at the beginning orthe end of one or more text lines contained in a text region is a codeexpressing a predetermined delimiter character. The specific image is animage expressing a delimiter character, and the character recognitionprocess is performed by the recognition unit 36. Also, it is beneficialto store a code table to use for character recognition in the storage14.

Subsequently, in the case in which a character code expressing adelimiter character is positioned at the beginning of the one or moretext lines, the combination unit 34 combines the text region containingthe character code with the text region adjacent to the left edge of thetext region containing the delimiter character. On the other hand, inthe case in which a character code expressing a delimiter character ispositioned at the end of the one or more text lines, the combinationunit 34 combines the text region containing the character code with thetext region adjacent to the right edge of the text region containing thedelimiter character.

According to the present exemplary embodiment, a delimiter charactercontained in a text region is applied as a feature indicating that textregions are continuous. For this reason, a desired combination result isobtained from multiple text regions.

Second Exemplary Embodiment

The first exemplary embodiment above describes a case of applying adelimiter character contained in a text region as a feature indicatingthat text regions are continuous. The present exemplary embodimentdescribes a case of applying a leader symbol contained in an imageregion as a feature indicating that text regions are continuous.

As described above, in the case of combining multiple text regions byusing the relationship of the center coordinates of the multiple textregions, the desired combination result may not be obtained in somecases. This point will be described with reference to FIGS. 9A and 9B.

FIG. 9A is a diagram illustrating another example of an input image.FIG. 9B is a diagram illustrating another example of multiple textregions.

The input image illustrated in FIG. 9A is an image containing five textlines, and if layout analysis is performed on this input image, a layoutanalysis result including multiple text regions R21, R22, R23, and R24is obtained, as illustrated in FIG. 9B.

Additionally, because the leader symbol “ . . . ” exists between thetext regions R21, R22, R23 and the text region R24, it is conceivablethat the text region R21, the text region R22, the text region R23, andthe text region R24 were originally a continuous text region.Consequently, it is desirable for these text regions R21, R22, R23, andR24 to be combined into a single text region, but depending on therelationship of the center coordinates, the text regions may not becombined in some cases.

For this reason, by loading the character recognition processing program14A stored in the storage 14 into the RAM 12C, and executing thecharacter recognition processing program 14A, the CPU 12A of an imageforming device 10B according to the present exemplary embodimentfunctions as each component illustrated in FIG. 10.

FIG. 10 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a functionalconfiguration of the image forming device 10B according to the secondexemplary embodiment. As illustrated in FIG. 10, the CPU 12A of theimage forming device 10B according to the present exemplary embodimentfunctions as an acquisition unit 30, a detection unit 38, a combinationunit 40, and a recognition unit 36. Note that component elements havingthe same function as the image forming device 10A illustrated in thefirst exemplary embodiment are denoted with the same signs, and arepeated description is omitted here.

The detection unit 38 according to the present exemplary embodimentdetects features indicating that regions are continuous from each of themultiple regions acquired by the acquisition unit 30. In the case of thepresent exemplary embodiment, a text region and an image region areincluded among the multiple regions. Also, as a feature indicating thatregions are continuous, a specific image contained in an image region isapplied. The specific image referred to herein is an image expressing apredetermined leader symbol as one example. Note that examples of leadersymbols include “ . . . ” (three-point leader), “. .” (two-pointleader), and the like. Leader symbols are a type of punctuation mark,and are used to join character strings to each other, similarly to thedelimiter characters above. Leaders symbols are a linear arrangement ofa certain number or more (for example, two or more) blobs of blackpixels.

In the case in which features are detected by the detection unit 32, thecombination unit 40 according to the present exemplary embodimentcombines adjacent regions. Specifically, in the case in which textregions are positioned on both the left and right sides of an imageregion containing a leader symbol, which is one example of a feature,the combination unit 34 combines the image region containing the leadersymbol with the text regions on both sides.

Next, FIG. 11 will be referenced to describe the action of the imageforming device 10B according to the second exemplary embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart illustrating one example of the flow of a processby the character recognition processing program 14A according to thesecond exemplary embodiment.

First, if the image forming device 10B is instructed to launch thecharacter recognition processing program 14A, each of the followingsteps is executed.

In step 130 of FIG. 11, the acquisition unit 30 acquires multipleregions by performing layout analysis on an input image. As one example,layout analysis is performed on an input image 52 illustrated in FIG.12, and a layout analysis result including an image region R31 andmultiple text regions R32 to R35 illustrated in FIG. 13 is obtained.

FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating one example of the input image 52according to the second exemplary embodiment. FIG. 13 is a diagramillustrating one example of the image region R31 and the multiple textregions R32 to R35 obtained as a layout analysis result according to thesecond exemplary embodiment.

In step 132, the detection unit 38 specifies one image region from amongthe multiple regions acquired in step 130. As one example, the singleimage region R31 is specified from the image region R31 and the multipletext regions R32 to R35 illustrated in FIG. 13.

In step 134, the detection unit 38 groups multiple continuous blackpixel blobs in the image region specified in step 132. The black pixelblobs are blobs of black pixels smaller than a character (for example,approximately ¼ of a 10-point character). Multiple black pixel blobsarranged in a straight line are grouped and treated as a leader symbolcandidate. As one example, multiple black pixel blobs 52A included inthe image region R31 illustrated in FIG. 13 are grouped together.

In step 136, the detection unit 38 determines whether or not themultiple black pixel blobs grouped in step 134 are a leader symbol. Inthe case of determining that the multiple black pixel blobs groupedtogether are a leader symbol (in the case of a positive determination),the flow proceeds to step 138, whereas in the case of determining thatthe multiple black pixel blobs grouped together are not a leader symbol(in the case of a negative determination), the flow proceeds to step142. As one example, the multiple black pixel blobs 52 a illustrated inFIG. 13 are determined to be a leader symbol. Note that characteristicssuch as the number and spacing of the multiple black pixel blobs mayalso be used in the determination of a leader symbol. For example, inthe case in which the number of the multiple black pixel blobs is acertain number or greater (for example, 2 or greater), the multipleblack pixel blobs are determined to be a leader symbol, whereas if lessthan the certain number, the multiple black pixel blobs are notdetermined to be a leader symbol. Also, in the case in which the spacingof the multiple black pixel blobs is fixed, the multiple black pixelblobs may be determined to be a leader symbol, whereas in the case inwhich the spacing of the multiple black pixel blobs is not fixed, themultiple black pixel blobs may not be determined to be a leader symbol.

In step 138, the combination unit 40 determines whether or not textregions exist on both the left and right sides of the image regioncontaining the leader symbol. In the case of determining that textregions exists on both the left and right sides of the image region (inthe case of a positive determination), the flow proceeds to step 140,whereas in the case of determining that text regions do not exist onboth the left and right sides of the image region (in the case of anegative determination), the flow proceeds to step 142.

In step 140, the combination unit 40 combines the image regioncontaining the leader symbol with the text regions adjacent on the boththe left and right sides of the image region, and proceeds to step 142.As one example, the image region R31 and the multiple text regions R32to R35 illustrated in FIG. 13 are combined, and a text region R36illustrated in FIG. 14 is obtained as the combination result.

FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating one example of the text region R36obtained as a combination result according to the second exemplaryembodiment.

In step 142, the combination unit 40 determines whether or not an imageregion not yet processed by the combination process exists. In the caseof determining that an unprocessed image region exists (in the case of apositive determination), the flow returns to step 132 and the process isrepeated, whereas in the case of determining that an unprocessed imageregion does not exist (in the case of a negative determination), theflow proceeds to step 144.

In step 144, the recognition unit 36 performs the character recognitionprocess on multiple text regions, including the text region obtained bythe above combination process, and acquires a character recognitionresult.

In step 146, the recognition unit 36 outputs the character recognitionresult obtained in step 144 to the storage 14 as one example, and endsthe series of processes by the character recognition processing program14A.

FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating one example of an image to which thecombination process according to the second exemplary embodiment isapplied. In the case of the image illustrated in FIG. 15, a layoutanalysis result including a text region R37 is obtained.

In FIG. 15, an image region containing the leader symbol “ . . . ”exists between a text region containing “1. Wood screw, 2. Plain washer,3. FT screw, 4. Bushing, 5. Vent, 6. Soft tape, 7. Soft tape” and a textregion containing “6, 4, 4, 4, 1, 1, 1”. For this reason, the textregions adjacent on both the left and right sides of the image regionare combined to obtain the text region R37.

Note that although the above describes the case of using an imageexpressing a leader symbol as a feature indicating that text regions arecontinuous, a character code expressing a leader symbol may also be usedas the feature. In this case, the detection unit 38 detects a charactercode expressing a leader symbol by determining whether or not acharacter code obtained by performing character recognition on aspecific image contained in an image region is a code expressing apredetermined leader symbol. The specific image is an image expressing aleader symbol, and the character recognition process is performed by therecognition unit 36. Also, it is beneficial to store a code table to usefor character recognition in the storage 14.

Subsequently, in the case in which text regions are positioned on boththe left and right sides of an image region containing a character codeexpressing a leader symbol, the combination unit 40 combines the imageregion containing the leader symbol with the text regions adjacent onboth the left and right sides of the image region.

According to the present exemplary embodiment, a leader symbol containedin an image region is applied as a feature indicating that text regionsare continuous. For this reason, a desired combination result isobtained from multiple text regions.

The above description takes an image forming device as one example ofthe information processing device according to the exemplaryembodiments. An exemplary embodiment may also be configured as a programthat causes a computer to execute the functions of each componentprovided in the image forming device. An exemplary embodiment may alsobe configured as a non-transitory computer-readable storage mediumstoring the program.

Otherwise, the configuration of the image forming device described inthe exemplary embodiments above is an example, and may be modifiedaccording to circumstances within a scope that does not depart from thegist.

Also, the process flows of the program described in the exemplaryembodiments above is an example, and unnecessary steps may be removed,new steps may be added, or the processing sequence may be rearrangedwithin a scope that does not depart from the gist.

Also, the exemplary embodiments above describe a case in which processesaccording to the exemplary embodiments are realized by a softwareconfiguration using a computer by executing a program, but theconfiguration is not limited thereto. An exemplary embodiment may alsobe realized by a hardware configuration, or by a combination of ahardware configuration and a software configuration, for example.

The foregoing description of the exemplary embodiments of the presentdisclosure has been provided for the purposes of illustration anddescription. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit thedisclosure to the precise forms disclosed. Obviously, many modificationsand variations will be apparent to practitioners skilled in the art. Theembodiments were chosen and described in order to best explain theprinciples of the disclosure and its practical applications, therebyenabling others skilled in the art to understand the disclosure forvarious embodiments and with the various modifications as are suited tothe particular use contemplated. It is intended that the scope of thedisclosure be defined by the following claims and their equivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. An information processing device comprising: aprocessor, configured to: perform layout analysis on an input image andacquire a plurality of regions from the input image, wherein theplurality of regions comprise a plurality of text regions; detect afeature from each of the plurality of text regions, wherein the featureis in a first text region, and wherein the feature indicates that atleast two of the plurality of text regions are continuous, and thefeature is a character code obtained by performing character recognitionon a specific image positioned at a beginning or an end of a text linecontained in the first text region; combine the first text region withan adjacent text region adjacent to the first text region to generate acombined region; and perform character recognition on the combinedregion to obtain a character recognition result.
 2. The informationprocessing device according to claim 1, wherein in a case in which thespecific image is positioned at the beginning of the text line, theprocessor combines the first text region containing the specific imagewith a text region adjacent to a left edge of the first text regioncontaining the specific image, and in a case in which the specific imageis positioned at the end of the text line, the processor combines thetext region containing the specific image with a text region adjacent toa right edge of the first text region containing the specific image. 3.The information processing device according to claim 2, wherein thespecific image is an image expressing a predetermined delimitercharacter.
 4. The information processing device according to claim 1,wherein the specific image is an image expressing a predetermineddelimiter character.
 5. The information processing device according toclaim 1, wherein the specific image is included in the first textregion.
 6. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1,wherein in a case in which the character code is positioned at thebeginning of the text line, the processor combines the first text regioncontaining the character code with a text region adjacent to a left edgeof the first text region containing the character code, and in a case inwhich the character code is positioned at the end of the text line, theprocessor combines the text region containing the character code with atext region adjacent to a right edge of the first text region containingthe character code.
 7. The information processing device according toclaim 6, wherein the character code is a code expressing a predetermineddelimiter character.
 8. The information processing device according toclaim 1, wherein the character code is a code expressing a predetermineddelimiter character.
 9. The information processing device according toclaim 1, wherein the plurality of regions include an image region otherthan the plurality of text regions, and the specific image is containedin the image region.
 10. The information processing device according toclaim 9, wherein in a case in which two text regions are positioned onboth a left and a right side of the image region containing the specificimage, the processor combines the image region with the two text regionson both the left and right sides.
 11. The information processing deviceaccording to claim 10, wherein the specific image is an image expressinga predetermined leader symbol.
 12. The information processing deviceaccording to claim 10, wherein the character code is a code expressing apredetermined leader symbol.
 13. The information processing deviceaccording to claim 9, wherein the specific image is an image expressinga predetermined leader symbol.
 14. The information processing deviceaccording to claim 9, wherein the character code is a code expressing apredetermined leader symbol.
 15. A non-transitory computer readablemedium storing a program causing a computer to execute a process forfunctioning as the information processing device according to claim 1.